Valencia Grace Will Take You to the Opera

Picture a dark burlesque fantasy freak show scored by the haunting notes of a pop opera.

This is the universe that Valencia Grace is building, where music is only the entry point, and the deeper story lives in the visuals and theatrics.

But there was a time when the show might not have gone on. In fact, Grace never thought she’d share her lyrics with the world.

It wasn’t until a friend reminded her of her roots as a musical theater performer that Valencia Grace, the artist, was born.

“I stopped writing because I was having a little bit of writer’s block, and I was trying to figure out who I was and what I wanted to say,” Grace says. “I had a coffee with my friend who told me — reminded me — that I’m a musical theater kid, and so I needed to start honoring that. It was that day forward that I started exploring hair, makeup, the buns, and writing more camp-like and being just slightly quirkier.”

Don’t take the theatrics as a mask.

“This is my way of showing everything that I’ve gone through and turning it into something beautiful, and I don’t feel like I’m hiding,” Grace says. “I almost feel like I’m revealing more.”

Grace is a visual person in all aspects of life, she says. This undoubtedly fuels her artistic choices, as does her synesthesia.

Synesthesia is a neurological trait that connects the five senses in atypical ways. A word may be associated with a specific color, for example, or a sound may trigger a taste.

“I have the song, the song is just not enough because I have synesthesia where I see colors, I hear things, I taste things, I smell things,” Grace says. “That’s why every single song has such a clear identity. The cover art is always considered, the colors are always considered, the location is always considered.”

The inspiration behind the visuals comes from different places, Grace says. Sometimes, she writes songs and immediately sees a color scheme, other times, she sits on a visual idea — sometimes for years — before she can execute it with a song.

No matter the inspiration, there is one constant: commitment.

“Once I do have a visual in mind, it will never change,” Grace says.

She works with her team to bring her visions to life through music and the drama of the opera.

“I’m a big believer in collaborating and trusting your creative partners,” Grace says.

CJ Baran, a writer and producer who’s worked with artists like Marina, Nessa Barrett, and Panic! At The Disco, is one such collaborator.

“Working with CJ has been really interesting and amazing because he’s taught me how to write a really solid pop song,” Grace says.

He’s also challenged her technique. Where Grace prefers to write a song from start to finish, mumbling her way through verses until she lands on a melody, her work with Baran usually starts at the chorus.

“We figure out what the overall concept of the song is and then build out the chorus and then build out the rest of the song from there,” Grace says. “It’s a really fun challenge."

Director and photographer Billy Cole Landers helps bring the songs to life visually.

Landers has been working with Grace since nearly the start of her career. He’s responsible for filming and photographing her music videos for songs like “Opera,” “Skin” and “En Repeat” — the latter of which describes a school shooting and a broken society.

But Grace doesn’t feel an obligation to directly address social issues in her music. Music is inherently impactful, she says.

“I don’t feel obliged to do it because I think that any type of music is healing, and so it doesn’t necessarily need to be super politically driven to have an effect,” Grace says. “It’s one of the scarier things to write about because you’re obviously giving your opinion on something, on things that are more intense.”

She does, however, enjoy the discourse her art creates.

“It is fun starting a conversation and having people argue about whether or not they think what you said is okay or not,” she says.

If you disagree with her, that’s fine. She got here on her own, anyway.

“I’m very proud that I’ve started moving the needle in my career since after getting dropped by everyone, and I was back to square one with no management, no label, no one,” Grace says. “I moved myself to New York and have completely just taken the biggest bet on myself by putting all of my cards and all of my energy and money into all these creative ideas that people are trusting me to do.”

Those creative ideas are building up to a debut album — one that Grace hopes Helena Bonham Carter will narrate.

"Let’s make it happen, is all I have to say."

Now, Grace prepares for her first headline tour, “Super Elastic: A Pop Opera,” with stops in Boston, Brooklyn, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C., with support from James the Seventh.

As her star burns brighter, Grace says she’s practicing grounding techniques and strengthening her inner peace.

“As long as I stay grounded and know who I am, then I can trust my vision and not worry because it’s worked so far,” Grace says.

She’ll see you at the opera.